Halfway up the eastern side looking over the Valley Aure,
Hourquette is the francisation of the Gascon word for fork , hurketɵ , which is derived from the Latin "furca" . It is a common name in the Pyrenees for a U shaped mountain pass. In French the word "Col" is used, which means collar or neck. Ancizan comes from the name of the town of Ancizan which is below in the vallée d'Aure.
The climb was used for the first time by Le Tour de France on stage 12 in 2011. It was climbed from the eastern side from Ancizan on a stage from Cugnaux to Luz Ardiden. The French rider Laurent Mangel was the first to cross the summit. It will be climbed again in 2013 on stage 9 from Saint-Girons to Bagnères-de-Bigorre.
A group of Dutch cyclists relax at the summit in July 2011.
Ancizan
Starting from Ancizan to the east, the Hourquette d'Ancizan ascent is 10.33 km long. Over this distance, you climb 805m. The average percentage is 7.8 %.This is a very beautiful climb with amazing views of the valley Aure below.
Starting from Campan, the Hourquette d'Ancizan ascent is 22.6 km long. Over this distance, you climb 904m. The average percentage is 4 %.
Profile from the eastern side, the side used by Le Tour de France.
Profile from the western side, from Payolle.
This post has been promoted to an article
